Matchmaking
by Don'tForgetTheNotes
Summary: This is the future. This is 500 years after an alien invasion. In this world who you spend your life with is chosen for you. This is a world where love doesn't exist...or does it? AU fanfic containing Laurwalk, Breredith, Donoblim and Julia/Darren
1. The Matching

_A/N: Okay guys so this is a new fanfic! It's an au one and I hope you enjoy :D_

_The characters in this fanfiction are based on members of Team StarKid but are mostly fictitious. Any relationships implied are purely for the sake of the story._

_Enjoy!_

Lauren woke up with a sigh as her alarm started beeping. It was always too early to get up but it was base policy after all. However Lauren just didn't have the strength to get up today so a moment later, she had rolled over and was just going back to sleep when there was a loud knocking on her door.

"Lauren! Lauren come on get up!" screamed a voice through the door. Lauren groaned as the person outside continued knocking on the door. She crawled out of bed and dragged herself over to the door. Once there she unlocked the door and pressed the open button to reveal her best friend Julia.

"Julia why are you always so wide awake?" moaned Lauren as she rubbed her eyes. Julia was already dressed so had obviously gotten up earlier than the morning alarm.  
"How can you not be awake?! Today is matchmaking day!" squealed Julia before pushing her way into Lauren's room. Lauren sighed before closing the door and walking into her bathroom. She wasn't looking forward to the matchmaking at all. It didn't feel like something she should be happy about.

Lauren saw it as the end of her freedom, she'd never come back to this room. Once you were matched you moved in with that person and were just expected to get married and start a family. Things moved fast since the invasion. The aliens has almost wiped out the human species so now ensuring humans didn't die out was seen as more important than love.  
"Don't you think it's more romantic to be able to find your perfect match on your own?" she questioned before beginning to brush her teeth. The matchmaking process was something Lauren thought about a lot. In the olden days, people had been able to find who they wanted to marry on their own. But that was before the aliens had come.  
"Lauren, romance doesn't exist anymore." said Julia with a laugh. Lauren didn't reply to this. That's what people believed now. You were matched with the person it was deemed was best for you to reproduce with and that was it. You had your whole lives to learn to love each other.

Lauren looked at herself in the mirror for a moment. She felt so nervous. Boys and girls were kept separate until they were eligible for being matched at 21. The only boy around her age she had seen regularly was her brother. Today she would be matched with someone she had never met before.  
"Julia what if I don't get matched with anyone?" said Lauren as she walked back into her room. She glared at Julia as she saw she was laughing.  
"Well that's impossible. You only get summoned to the matchmaking if they've found a match for you."  
"I guess." muttered Lauren. Not everyone was summoned the year they turned 21, for example their friend Jaime hadn't been so she would have to see what next year brought. However Lauren still wasn't so convinced, how could they possibly match everyone? She got changed into the regulation black jumpsuit before quickly doing her hair. Once she was ready, she and Julia left her room.

The base they lived in had grown around the subway system of the city once known as Chicago. When the aliens had attacked, the humans had headed underground and sealed themselves in. You heard rumours of bases being attacked by the aliens but they had been lucky so far. Lauren and Julia headed towards the nearest station and joined the crowds of people heading towards the train.  
Julia looked at her friend as they walked. She wished Lauren was as excited as her. Today was the day they met the person who they'd spend the rest of their lives with! It was something they should be excited for, and yet Lauren wasn't. Julia sighed to herself as they came down onto the platform and waited for the train.

"Hey guys!"

Julia and Lauren turned to see their friends Denise and Meredith were making their way over to them. Well at least these two were excited as Julia felt. The four girls hugged just as a train came thundering into the station. Somehow, they managed to get three seats and then Lauren ended up sat on Julia's knee

"So guys, are we all ready to meet our matches?" gushed Meredith excitedly. She was sure ready, having to wait until you were 21 at least before you could even kiss a boy was in her mind crazy but those were the laws. Everything you said and did growing up was logged for the purposes of the matchmaking process. They went through medical examinations once a year and these included horrifically long personality tests all to determine who their match should be. Meredith was excited to meet her match. She had spent her whole life wondering what they would be like.

She smiled as she listened to Julia and Denise talk about what it would be like living with their matches. Then her eyes fell on Lauren. Lauren was staring into space and didn't seem to be buying any attention at all to the girls' conversation.

"I'm sort of nervous," voiced Denise "What do you talk about with them?"

"Well they're going to end up knowing everything, so just tell them about yourself!" said Julia. Meredith smiled and nodded which seemed to calm Denise a little. They finally made it to the right station and got off. The girls split up to find their parents before they would be called into the auditorium.

Meredith finally found her parents and pulled them both into tight hugs. She hoped she would be as happy in married life as her parents were. They really did seem to love each other. They spoke for a few moments before it was time to head into the auditorium. Meredith found the others before they all sat down together. For the first time, she looked across the room to where all the boys were sat. They looked…wow, there seemed to be so many and her match was somewhere there.

"Now if I can have your attention, we will begin the matchmaking."

Joe held his breath as the names of the first match were read out. The girl's name was read out first and then the boy's. To keep order, the girls were read out in alphabetically. As the names were read out, he kept glancing over at all the girls. Some looked confident and were flashing brilliant smiles at the boys whilst others looked nervous and were keeping their eyes down.

He was quickly becoming bored. Joe could only watch so many people get matched. The endless rounds of applause after each match was making his hands hurt. There was a blonde girl on the stage and Joe momentarily paid attention as a boy named Jeff, who had been in the same dorm as him was matched with her. Hours seemed to pass and yet it wasn't like the announcer was taking his time. Joe sighed and slid down in his seat slightly and settled in for the wait.

"Lauren Lopez." drawled the very clearly bored man. Joe watched as a petite girl with brown hair slowly made her way up onto the stage. She was 21? She looked so young. He watched as her eyes flitted around the room before gazing at the ground, she was cute. Joe wondered how exactly the matchmaking process worked, he felt a lot of these girls were out of his league and yet his match was somewhere here.

"Joseph Walker."

Joe's eyes widened as he heard his name read out. He was her match. Joe felt frozen to his seat but came crashing back to earth as his friend Brian, who was sat next to him gave him a shove. He gulped before slowly standing up and walking towards the stage. Lauren was staring at him as he came closer. Joe finally made it onto the stage and stood next to Lauren. There was a round of applause before Lauren linked his arm and they left the stage.

Lauren felt stunned into silence as they walked. She noticed her mom smiling and waving at her but Lauren didn't know what expression she gave her in return. He wasn't anything like what she thought her match would look like. She knew she shouldn't judge him on first impressions but she couldn't help it. This was the man she would be spending the rest of her life with. They left the auditorium and joined the line of newly matched couples waiting for their official photos.

"So erm, they said Joseph but everyone calls me Joe." He said awkwardly. Lauren carefully unlinked her arm from Joe's and turned to smile at him. Now she was looking at him out of the glare of the stage lighting he was kinda cute. His blue eyes seemed to almost glow.

"Well I'm Lauren." She with a smile. Joe gave her a large smile in return as they moved up the photo line. They didn't really say much more to each other, Lauren didn't really know what to say. What did you say to the man you'd just found out was your match? They made it to the front of the line and stepped forward when called.

"All right if we can have you sir stood behind your lovely lady with your arms around her." Directed the photographer. They did as he asked, Lauren held her breath as she felt Joe gently loop his arms around her waist and clasp them together. Lauren placed her hands over his and they smiled into the camera. Once they had had their photo taken, they were directed down a corridor to yet another line. This was where they received their new apartment allocations.

"Names?" asked the person behind the desk. Lauren glanced at Joe and found he was looking back at her. Lauren took a deep breath but Joe beat her to it.

"Lauren Lopez and Joseph Walker." Answered Joe. Huh, he'd remembered her surname. There was no reason why he wouldn't have done, seeing as she was his match. It just surprised her a little.

"Apartment 402, here's all the information you'll need." Said the person before handing them a plastic wallet of information. The 'celebrations' of matchmaking lasted the whole day. First they would find their room, then they would meet their parents for a meal and then all the matched couples went to a party.

Lauren looked at Joe as they walked. She could tell he was nervous, the way he kept clearing his throat as if he wanted to say something. Life after matchmaking was what you made of it and Lauren knew if she tried, it could work. But what if she and Joe hated each other?

Joe turned to look at Lauren and saw her quickly look away. He was suddenly lost for words but he guessed that was a normal reaction. There were couples all around them who were walking in an awkward silence just like them, there were only ever a few couples who hit it off right away. Joe instinctively put his arms around Lauren to support her as someone pushed past her. He saw it was his friend Brian and a brown haired girl. They seemed in an awful hurry to get to their apartment. However the girl happened to look back and smiled as she saw Lauren and pulled Brian to a stop.

"Hey Lauren! Cool match! Well we'll see you at the party!" squealed the girl before she pulled Brian away. He and Lauren carried on walking after a moment.

"That was my friend Meredith." Lauren said, answering the question he had been about to ask. What a coincidence, his friend Brian had been matched with her friend Meredith.

"Well that was my friend Brian." Said Joe with a smile. This made Lauren smile too and these smiles lasted as they got onto the train that would take them to their new apartment.

Their apartment was nice. It was basic but still nice. And it was big, or at least bigger than the room he'd called his own for his whole life. Joe walked into the middle of the room before looking back at Lauren. She was stood over by the door with her arms folded. This was so…awkward. Joe excused himself to the bathroom but it wasn't so he could use the facilities. He needed to clear his head. They just had to get use to each other. Joe shook himself before leaving the room. He walked back into the sitting room and found Lauren sat on the sofa. He sat down next to her and smiled.

"Okay we should get to know each other." He started, "What profession are you assigned to?"

Joe smiled as Lauren laughed at his eagerness. He watched her take a deep breath before answering.

"I'm assigned to teaching, and you?" she asked. Joe nodded at this, they were getting somewhere!

"I'm a base officer."

They carried on talking and telling each other things about themselves and soon the atmosphere felt far more relaxed. In no time, it was time to go and meet their parents for dinner.

He was sure that Lauren would make a good friend. However Joe knew it had to be more than that. Lauren seemed a good match, and he felt he had feelings for her...even if they were just small feelings based on his first impressions of her. The next few months would be the most important in their relationship and Joe was excited if slightly nervous to experience it.

* * *

_A/N: So what do you think? You opinions always mean the world to me so let me know! I will be finishing The Game before doing another chapter on this and then I have A Little Bit Longer and The Doll to work on :')_

_Bye!_


	2. The Party

_A/N: Hello! You guys have blown me away with your response! Here's chapter two!_

_SlytherinStarkid: Yay! I'm so glad you like it!_

_StarkidPD: Aww thank you! I'm really excited about this one :D_

_MysteriousGreenHufflepuffAgent: Thank you! And you'll find out :')_

_Starkidsforever: Oh yeah I think it's called Matched! I'd never heard of it but someone mentioned it in the reviews but hey there's no such thing as an original idea right? XD_

_Jarren: YES. If you like them then you'll like this!_

_Potterfanatic: Ooo awesome!_

_StarkidBecca: Yay! :D_

_a-random-fanfiction-fairy: Oh my gosh really? Writing is my dream career so it's amazing to know people appreciate my work :')_

_CorySupporter: I googled the book after you mentioned it and I'm happy they're not like exactly the same but I might have to check that book out! And aww thank you!_

_TearsOfaClown: HELLO! Ahh I've missed you so much! I was just thinking the other day that I hadn't seen a review from you in a while. I hope you like the rest of the story! :D_

_starkidllamas-llama: Ooo no I haven't read that but I will check it out! And yay!_

_starkid3ever: Eeep! Yay! I mostly have the whole story thought out now :D_

_The characters in this fanfiction are based on members of Team StarKid but are entirely fictitious. Any relationships implied are purely for the sake of the story._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

Julia held her breath as she and Darren walked into the room hand in hand. The dinner with the parents was held in a large room and each couple and their parents had a table. They stopped by the table plan and Julia was too busy concentrating on finding their names to notice someone had come to stand next to them.

"Hey Julia!"

She turned to see Lauren and her match were stood by the table plan too. Julia pulled her friend into a big hug before pulling back and looking at her friend. Her heart sank slightly as she saw Lauren's smile wasn't reaching her eyes. Julia looked at the boy stood next to her before looking back at Lauren.

"Oh erm, this is Joe." Said Lauren quietly. Joe gave her a smile before shaking her hand. Julia introduced Darren to them before Darren took her hand and lead her over to their table. She waved at Lauren and saw her friend looked sad she was leaving once more. Julia looked away and shook herself, today was about her and Darren. Lauren would be fine, she just had to get used to Joe. She smiled as she thought this, everything would be fine. They reached their table and sat down.

Darren smiled as Julia introduced her parents. This was all so exciting. It was nice to finally be matched, the matchmaking process was all you ever heard about growing up. Julia already seemed like his perfect match, they hadn't stopped talking since they'd had their photo taken and they had so much in common. Being matched was a piece of cake. Darren smiled as he noticed his parents making their way over to the table. He stood up and hugged them both before introducing them.

"So how's your apartment?" asked his dad. Darren turned and smiled at Julia. Their apartment was nice and now that he was out of his old room, he felt such a sense of freedom.

"It's great." He replied. Darren took Julia's hand and squeezed it, "I'll think we'll be very happy there." He smiled more as Julia laughed slightly. Both sets of parents were smiling at their newly matched children, another match had gone off without a hitch.

However the same could not be said for Lauren and Joe's table. Lauren was pushing her food around her plate and only half listening to the conversation that was happening. It was only when Joe's mom mentioned grandchildren did she finally look up. Of course, they would be expecting grandchildren soon, her brother had been matched two years ago and he and his wife already had a child.

"Well we don't want to rush things." Said Joe calmly. Lauren looked up at him as he spoke, it seemed he had been watching her reaction to their parents talking about grandchildren.

"Well none of us are getting any younger!"

Lauren looked back down at her plate as her mom spoke before laughing. She felt Joe's knee nudge hers but she didn't look up at him. Why was she finding this so hard? It wasn't like people knew anything different to being matched with someone you didn't know. You were expected to deal with it, people wouldn't understand if Lauren tried to explain that something was wrong. She felt like she was waiting for something but even she didn't know what that thing was.

Joe watched Lauren as she sighed before putting her knife and fork down. He hadn't expected matched life to be like this. He knew it was just the first day but as he looked around the room, everyone else seemed happy. They were all talking and Lauren had barely said anything the whole meal.

His eyes fell on Brian who was sat on a table a little way off. Brian and Meredith seemed to be the match of the year. Meredith was leaning against him and Brian had his arm around her. Joe wouldn't be surprised if they announced they were engaged by the end of the night.

"So how old are you Joe?" asked Mrs Lopez. Joe blinked and looked up at her. It occurred to him that he and Lauren hadn't spoken about age yet.

"I'm 23." He replied before smiling at Mrs Lopez. Joe noticed his answer caused Lauren to look up at him. For two years he'd watched his friends be summoned to the matchmaking ceremony and he'd had to stay behind. Now he knew that was all because he'd been waiting for Lauren. It was amazing that everyone was matched long before they became eligible for matching.

"So I'm sure you're happy your life can finally start now you have our Lauren."

"Yeah, I am." Muttered Joe. He smiled at Lauren and his heart soared a little as Lauren gave him a smile in return.

The dinner ended and they said goodbye to their parents. Joe and Lauren walked the short distance to the room the matched couples' party was in. Joe was slightly reassured that although some couples already seemed to be all over each other, there were ones that like them, still had an element of awkwardness.

The room the party was in was dark and there were flashing lights dancing around the room. Loud music was blaring from the speakers and the dance floor was already crammed with people dancing.

"Do you want a drink?" Joe shouted to Lauren.

"Yeah, just a soda is fine. I'll find us a table." She replied before heading off towards the tables on one side of the room. Joe watched her go before joining the line for drinks.

Lauren finally made it to the tables and glanced around. She smiled with relief as she saw Denise sat on one of the tables. Lauren walked over and sat next to her.

"Oh hi Lauren!" Denise said before hugging her. It turned out Denise's match Jeff was in the drinks line as well. Lauren caught sight of Meredith and Brian dancing close to each other on the dance floor before looking back at Denise.

"So how's your match?" She asked, Lauren had a horrible feeling that she was the only one who felt so uncomfortable in her match. Lauren didn't want to feel uncomfortable, she wanted to feel normal and like everyone but she almost felt like she was the only sane one in this whole base.

"Oh it's great!" Denise exclaimed. "When we got to our apartment we started off just talking but then we ended up making out!" Denise seemed so happy. Lauren felt she must be going crazy. People here didn't think for themselves anymore, they were told who their match was and then almost seemed automatically attracted to them. It was like the system decided who you would love and then made you love that person. Almost like they were brainwashing people.

"What's your match like?" she asked in return. Lauren took a deep breath before slowly answering.

"Erm, it's okay, we're just still getting used to each other."

She didn't say anymore and it seemed Denise knew not to ask anything else. They were saved by Jeff coming over with his and Denise's drinks. Lauren smiled as Denise introduced Jeff officially to her. She was happy for her friend, Jeff seemed a good match for her. Lauren watched as they began talking to each other before looking away. Her eyes landed on Joe who was nearing the front of the line. She guessed he was a good match for her, Lauren was just having a hard time coming to terms with the matching which she thought was odd as it wasn't like the matchmaking came as a surprise.

She knew a lot of newly matched couples often put on facades to pretend they were happy but in reality they weren't However, people knew to never say anything, as you heard stories of matches who refused to live together…they mysteriously disappeared. This made Lauren a little queasy, she didn't want to find out what happened to those people so as Joe came back, Lauren gave him a large smile.

"Hey do you want to dance?" Lauren asked shyly, Joe seemed surprised for a second but quickly smiled and nodded. They took sips of their drinks before he took her hand and led her onto the dance floor. The song playing was an upbeat pop one so they danced in time to the beat. She smiled as she looked up at Joe. This wasn't so bad! Lauren looked around as someone nudged her and saw Julia and Darren were dancing next to them. She smiled at her friend before looking back at Joe. They danced through a few fast songs before a slow song came on.

Lauren held her breath as Joe came close to her and wrapped his arms around her. They were pressed so close and Lauren suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Somehow they made it through the whole song without Lauren being so tense she was a wall but then the song ended. She didn't have time to react before Joe was leaning forwards and kissing her. Lauren felt like everything was in slow motion as their lips met. The kiss only last a moment before Lauren had pulled away. She pulled out of Joe's arms and backed away.

"Lauren I'm sorry." Joe began but before he could say anymore, Lauren had turned and was running out of the room. She pushed through the crowd and kept running. She didn't know if Joe followed her but she didn't look back to check. How was everyone else okay with just being matched?

Lauren felt like she had been running for hours when she suddenly realised where she was. She was on the route back to her old room, not the apartment she now had to call her own. To get into the segregated girl and boy sections of the base you needed a key card. You were given your own key card the night before you went to the matchmaking ceremony. Growing up you only got out of your section if your parents had come to take you out for a few days. Being a girl, her key card only worked to get into the girls' dorms. There was someone she could go and visit…

* * *

Jaime flicked through a book for a moment before sighing and gazing around her room. It was so boring here now her friends had been matched. She hoped and prayed she'd get matched next year as she was on the verge of going insane in this place. She was surprised when there was a knock on the door. Who could that be? Jaime slowly got up and walked over to her door. She pressed the button and her eyes widened as she saw Lauren stood before her.

"Jaime can I come in please?" muttered Lauren. Jaime nodded and stood aside to let her friend in. What was Lauren doing here? She should be with her match at the party. Jaime closed her door before walking over to her bed, Lauren was already sat on it so Jaime sat on it too.

"Are you okay Lauren?" she finally said after they had been sat in silence for a good ten minutes. Lauren was fiddling with her hands and wasn't looking at her. Suddenly, tears were falling down Lauren's face. Jaime pulled her friend into a hug although her mind was whirling around. Why was Lauren crying? Shouldn't she be happy?

Over the next half hour or so, Lauren told her everything that was wrong. Jaime felt for her, some people never settled into matched life and she really hoped Lauren wouldn't be one of them. Life wasn't easy for those people. She was sure this was just all teething problems that would be worked out in a few months.

"So maybe he shouldn't have kissed you so early but you have to at least try and learn to see him that way." She finally said, what else could she say? Jaime had feared something like this would happen, Lauren had always had her head in the clouds with talk of fairy tales, finding your true love and living happily ever after. She thought she would have grown out of it by the time matchmaking came but it would appear not.

"But Jaime I just don't know what to do. It's so much pressure, get married, have children, I don't think I'm ready for it." Lauren whispered. Jaime sighed and hugged Lauren once more.

"You might not be ready but you don't have to rush, people do but it's not the law. You have the next few months to get to know each other before you have to do anything." Jaime said softly, she felt Lauren nod her head before she slowly pulled away. They looked at each other for a moment before Lauren wiped her eyes.

"Well thanks for listening Jaime, I should be getting back."

Lauren felt a little better for voicing everything. She and Jaime said their goodbyes before Lauren slowly left the room. She stayed still for a moment before sighing and finally beginning the journey back to her apartment. She really had run a long way, Lauren quickly realised it would be quicker to take the train home so headed for the nearest station.

* * *

Joe breathed a sigh of relief as the door slid open and Lauren came into the room. He had been worried sick the whole time she had been gone. He felt terrible for the fact she had run off because of something he had done.  
"There you are! I was worried." he stated whilst frowning. Lauren seemed surprised he had been waiting for her. She slowly walked into the room and stopped a little way off from him.  
"I went to see my friend." was all the said. She'd gone to see her friend? Tonight? Joe sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. He knew he wasn't going to get any more out of her.  
"Well it'll be lights out soon so maybe we should get some sleep." He finally said after a long pause. Lauren nodded and they slowly walked in the bedroom. The awkwardness returned as they found their issued pyjamas. Joe wanted to give her, her privacy to get changed so excused himself to the bathroom. He quickly changed and then decided to brush his teeth whilst he waited.

Lauren tied the drawstring on her pyjamas before looking at herself in the mirror. She was tied so she hoped she'd be able to go right off to sleep. She put the clothes she'd just taken off down the laundry chute before slowly edging out of the room.

"Erm...Joe?" she said quietly. Lauren immediately regretted sounding so timid. She had to be cool about this! Somehow Joe heard her and came out of the bathroom. He passed her whilst smiling and went into the bedroom. Lauren almost ran down the hall to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She brushed her teeth and then waited an awfully long time, she just couldn't go back out. Finally she unlocked the door and slowly walked back to the bedroom.

She kept her eyes on the ground as she walked around to her side of the bed. Joe was already under the sheets so Lauren did the same. They barely said anything to each other as Joe turned the lights off. They were both too tired to try and find conversation in a situation where there wasn't any.

It was a few hours later when Joe woke up. He turned and saw Lauren's side of the bed was empty. However one of her pillows was missing. Joe quietly stood up and walked out of the bedroom, he went down the hall to where it opened out into the sitting room and found Lauren curled up asleep on the sofa. For some reason, this upset Joe more than he thought it would have done. He looked at her for a moment before moving towards her.

He wasn't going to let her sleep on the sofa. If anyone was going to do that, it should be him. Joe carefully picked her up and carried her back to the bedroom. She only muttered slightly as they went, too deep in sleep to be aware of her surroundings. He gently laid her back on the bed and tucked her in. Joe watched her for a moment as she sighed and rolled over before leaving the room. He lay down on the sofa and looked up at the ceiling. He'd always known matched couples to be happy but then again who knew what went on behind closed doors... Joe wondered how many other people in this base were sleeping on their sofas right now. He sighed before closing his eyes.

* * *

_A/N: Until next time my friends!_


	3. Make It Work

_A/N: Hey guys! So it's been a while! Sorry! So what happened with me, well I'm officially moving to Cardiff, Wales in September to study Scriptwriting! So maybe one day you'll all go and see a film/watch a TV show that I played a part in writing :')_

_starkidllamas-llama: Yeah! Hehe and I know!_

_TearsOfaClown: Well school is important :D and aww! Hehehe_

_starkid3ever: Yeah hehe it'll be some angst but we'll have to wait and see if it all goes okay!_

_BlueFeatherStar: Aww well thank you!_

_Starkidsforever: Ahh! That really means so much to me! Seriously thank you! And I have a good feeling about this story!_

_sim731: Yay! Hehe_

_AccioAutumn: We shall have to see and aww thank you! :D_

_Guest: Yeah haha and maybe Jaime is waiting for someone haha_

_Waspsbewaremywrathrawr: Aww hehe and yeah I'm really trying to go with the idea that what people now view as love has changed so people are matched and just almost automatically love that person as they've been told that's their perfect match but you always get some people who can't settle into that :') I'm glad you like it!_

_Mywiresareprotected: Ahh yay! Glad you like it! And Jaime is waiting for someone!_

_Starkidlov3r: Here's more! :D_

_I do not own the characters, they are based on members of Team StarKid. Any relationships implied are purely for the sake of the story._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

Lauren woke up as the alarm clock went off but didn't open her eyes right away. She stretched and finally opened her eyes. She was back in the bedroom but she remembered going out to sleep on the sofa. Lauren stood up and walked out of the bedroom.

She found Joe already up and sat at the kitchen table drinking coffee.  
"Hey good morning. There's some coffee in the pot if you drink it." he said before looking back through the tablet that was acting as a newspaper. Lauren nodded before walking over to the coffee machine. She poured herself out a cup before going to sit down at the table.  
"Erm, did you move me back into the bedroom?"

She watched as Joe took a sip of his coffee before slowly looking up at her. He looked nervous all of a sudden.  
"Yeah, I woke up and found you asleep on the sofa. I took you back to bed and I slept on the sofa. I'm fine if you're not comfortable sleeping in the same bed but I'd prefer if it was me sleeping on the sofa." he said with a smile.

Lauren couldn't help but smile in return. He was such a thoughtful guy. They looked at each other for a moment before but Lauren looked away however she was still smiling. They had breakfast and finished their drinks before getting ready.

Joe let Lauren use the bathroom first and when she finally came out, she was already fully dressed. He quickly got ready and then they left the apartment together. Their walk down to the subway was silent.

Once they reached the station. It was time to say their goodbyes. He was heading to the north of the base and Lauren was heading east.  
"Erm, well see tonight Joe." Lauren said before waving and walking away. Joe shouted bye after her before walking for his train.

He made it to Base Officers' Station and clocked in his timecard. Joe walked into the cafeteria and looked around. He smiled as he saw Jeff sat at one of the tables flicking through a tablet. Joe walked over and sat down next to him.

"Hey Jeff!" said Joe cheerily. Jeff looked up and smiled at him widely before turning off his tablet.

"Hey! I wondered when you'd get here!" Replied Jeff. The two spoke for a while until a man came into the room.

"All right I need all newbies over here to assign you sections."

Joe and Jeff stood and walked towards him, the same as a number of other people are doing. They were assigned partners, by luck, Joe and Jeff had been partnered up. The man who they had learnt was Chief Graham then assigned them to walk the beat on the south side of the base.

In the years before you were matched you began training for the profession you would be assigned to. Even what job you did was picked out for you but the base only worked so efficiently because people didn't really have a say in what they did. Both Joe and Jeff knew what being a Base Officer entailed but for the first few weeks they had to answer to a higher ranked officer. They were on their way to meet her now. Joe was excited to finally be starting his job, it felt like everything was finally starting.

Meredith took a deep breath before knocking on the door to the officer she was stood outside. Being a pediatrician was what she had trained for but she still felt so nervous.

"Come in." said a voice from behind the door. Meredith let out the breath she was holding before opening the door.

A woman was sat behind the desk and smiled widely at her as Meredith came in.

"Oh hello! You must be Meredith!" she said cheerily. Meredith smiled and nodded. She felt a little better now she knew the senior pediatrician, who she knew was called Maria, seemed nice. She watched as Maria stood up and came around the desk towards her.

"I was just waiting for you to arrive before doing my morning rounds of the wards!"

"Oh great! I'm excited to jump right in!" Meredith answered happily. Maria beamed at this before leading the way out of the room.

The base had one large children's hospital. Boys and girls were still mostly kept separate except for the intensive care wards. Meredith was so ready to start helping people. She was ready to make a difference! She hadn't ever felt happier than she did now, she had been matched with Brian who was everything she had wanted in a match and now she had a job she knew she would love. Meredith was the perfect person to live in the base…because she conformed.

Darren breathed a sigh of relief as the end of work alarm went off. He was one of the base's many janitors. It didn't really matter what job you had as everyone was merely fulfilling a job that needed to be done in the base. No one was paid for the work they did, there was no money in the bases. People paid for the things they needed by contributing their time to the base. He was excited to get back to his apartment to see Julia. She was nice to talk to and they need to get to know each other more!

Someone shouted goodbye to him and he waved back before setting off for the train. He had a fairly long ride but it felt like nothing and soon he was stopping outside his apartment. Darren keyed in the password before going inside. Julia was already home, what with being a journalist on the base newspaper she was closer to home.

He smiled as Julia walked towards him and hugged him. Darren kissed her on the top of her head.

"I missed you today." He whispered softly. Julia looked up at him and smiled before pecking him on the lips. Deep down, Darren knew it was impossible to miss someone he had just met yesterday but that's what people did here. You acted like you loved your match until one day you would wake up and actually love them.

Brian smiled as he came in through his apartment door and saw Meredith stood in the kitchen already making dinner. She immediately came over and kissed him. He held her tightly and they stood in silence for a moment. Brian had picked up something very special on his way home from work and he wanted to give it to Meredith now so after a moment he pulled away.

"Meredith there's something I need to ask you." He finally said. Meredith seemed intrigued with what he had to say so remained silent. Brian slowly smiled as he slowly went down on one knee before pulling a small box out of his pocket and holding it out.

"Well you marry me?"

"Yes!" Meredith screamed. Brian laughed and put the ring onto her finger before standing up and hugging her.

The two giggled for a while more before going back to making dinner. They were engaged! And everything was going according to plan.

**Two Weeks Later**

* * *

Lauren smiled as she walked into the coffee shop and saw Julia already sat at a table. She went straight over and hugged her friend tightly before sitting down. The past two weeks had been hard for Lauren. She missed seeing her best friend every day. This was the first time they had seen each other since matchmaking day. Lauren missed Julia so much, matched life hadn't been the greatest. She and Joe barely spoke and when they did it was only to ask who was ordering the weekly food order and to find out who would be the first back to the apartment so they could start dinner. Joe was still sleeping on the sofa and they hadn't spoken about if or when that would change.

"So how are you been?" Julia asked once they had ordered their drinks and food. Lauren took a deep breath before speaking. She wasn't actually sure if she should tell Julia that she was having such problems. You never knew who was listening to your conversations and if any of them were people who could act on what you said. The base had many agents that blended into the crowds for the sole purpose of eavesdropping.

"Erm, I've been good." She finally said quietly. Julia smiled at her and Lauren tried to return the smile but failed. They sat in silence for a moment and she panicked slightly at the fact that it was an awkward silence. She had never had awkward silences with Julia. This realisation saddened Lauren.

Their food arrived and they were able to stop the silence by tucking into their food. As they ate, the small talk began to flow and finally they were almost back to the way they used to be. Lauren finally smiled to herself but then Julia said something which made her smile shatter…

"Okay so there's something I've been wanting to tell you since I arrived." Julia said excitedly. Lauren laughed as she took in how excited her friend was. She wondered what Julia had to say that was making her so excited.

"Well come on tell me!" Lauren replied excitedly. She watched as Julia took a deep breath before pulling something out of her pocket. She slipped it onto her finger before holding her hand out to Lauren. Her face fell as she saw the thing on Julia's finger was an engagement ring.

"Darren asked me to marry him!" Julia almost screamed. She was beaming at her friend but this smile fell as she saw Lauren wasn't smiling. She wasn't smiling at all…

"How can you be engaged? You've only known him two weeks!" Lauren muttered. Julia was suddenly angry. Why couldn't her best friend be happy for her? Yes she had only known Darren two weeks but he was her match. Meredith was already engaged to her match and it seemed Denise and hers would soon be doing the same. Lauren was the odd one out. Julia ripped her hand away and folded her arms.

"Why shouldn't I be engaged to him? He's my match."

"But you barely know each other." Pleaded Lauren. Julia didn't know what to say to her best friend. What could she say? There was nothing they could do, yes she didn't know Darren that well but they had their whole lives to get to know each other.

"Lauren it doesn't matter that we barely know each other. Darren is my match and you know as well as I do that once you're matched there's no going back. What's the point in waiting?" whispered Julia quietly. She watched as Lauren looked down at her plate and didn't look up at her. Julia was speaking the truth. She had heard rumours that Lauren and her match Joe weren't really connecting that well. Julia was worried something bad would happen to her friend but what could she do? She couldn't intervene. They said goodbye to each other as if they had just met and Julia started walking back to her apartment.

What was she supposed to do? There had to be something that could help Lauren and Joe because if they didn't do something, they wouldn't have much time before the talk started. Being talked about in the base wasn't a good thing. People would be taken in for questioning about why they weren't making things work. The main purpose of matching was reproducing so if you weren't really doing that then the base authorities became suspicious. What if something happened to Lauren? She felt a little sick. Julia took a deep breath as she reached the train station. Things would be okay. Everything became better with time so all they could do was wait she guessed.

* * *

_A/N: Okay so I just want to say that like some of them are getting engaged so soon after meeting as that is who they are told they will be spending the rest of their lives with as there isn't really point in waiting :')_

_Also shameless advertising but I am co-running a campaign to have a Glow* Live event in the UK so search for Let's Glow* Britain on twitter and indiegogo :') one of the rewards for backing is a copy in book form of a parody adventure story I'm writing called Turn Right at the Misty Mountains!_


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